Coconut Grove Commercial Real Estate Market's Hopping

In partnership with Grass River Property and Comras Company, Federal acquired the iconic CocoWalk asset for $87.5 million last May.

MIAMI—Virginia Street Apartments, a seven-story multifamily building in Coconut Grove , FL. The sale price: $11.1 million. The multifamily building 66 units. The 1.06-acre site sits at 2890 Virginia Street with visibility on US 1. That’s a short walk from the Coconut Grove Metromover Station, the heart of Coconut Grove and Merrick Park. “This was a unique opportunity to acquire an income-producing apartment building with potential for redevelopment and excellent visibility on US 1 in Coconut Grove,” says Arthur D. Porosoff , a vice president investments in Marcus & Millichap ‘s Miami office who represented the buyer. The buyer is a New York investor. In the last 12 months, Porosoff has facilitated the sale of more than 20 multifamily properties in Miami. He is currently marketing five properties in Downtown Miami, Little Havana and Miami Beach. But Coconut Grove commercial real estate market is heating up. Grand Corner, a 28,731-square-foot retail building in Coconut Grove, FL, recently traded hands . The sale price more is more than double the purchase price from less than three years ago. Federal Realty Investment Trust is on a mission to reboot some of South Florida’s most iconic properties. In 2015, the publicly-traded REIT purchased CocoWalk for $87.5 million last  year. David Martin , president and co-founder of Miami-based real estate development firm  Terra , sees a healthy Miami residential real estate market. As he sees it, today’s developers are increasingly building for living, breathing residents—so-called “end-users.” “At Grove at Grand Bay in Coconut Grove, set for completion this summer, buyers include local accountants, attorneys and doctors,” Martin tells GlobeSt.com. “More than half of the building’s owners are from the US, including many empty-nesters relocating from across South Florida.” “Nearby, at Park Grove, we’ve sold units to New England transplants and seasonal snowbirds,” he says. “One of our buyers is a middle-aged couple relocating from Connecticut after years of vacationing on a sailboat in Coconut Grove. Now they’re putting down roots in South Florida and will split their time between Miami and Maine.”